Against the dark we set a candle,Like the light your
memory brings every day, With all our love for your
kindred soul,
we miss you more than words can say.
Goodnight
tree...You will live on forever in
the spirit and soul of StarLink-IRC
the online family that you loved so very much.

There's a
world beyond our every dayA STAR that's LINKed
to the Milky Way.We gather there in
cyber spaceTo chat on IRC in our
special place.

Friendships are
formed, with laughter and tears,Bonds that will last
on through the years.Come and chat with
our family -We welcome you on
StarLink-IRC!

You'll meet folks
from around the globeWith many talents and
interests to probe.There is lots of fun
and games to playAnd great art shows
that will make your day.

There is always
something to do and someone to seeAnd, regardless what
Itsy says, it is all free..On StarLink-IRC -
your friendly, family net -The very best you
will ever find, I bet!

NEWSPAPER
ARTICLES

Breaking NewsFormer
City Clerk remembered

Wilna Wellenbrink passed away suddenly in her sleep last Wednesday,
September 14th. She had retired a number of years ago after serving
many years as deputy clerk for the Williams Lake City Hall. No stranger
to politics, she’d also been an elected Councillor with the City of
Prince George. A memorial service was held today, Wednesday, September
21st at 1:00 p.m. in the Cariboo Central Adventist Church. Family and
friends gathered to mark the passing of this special woman and good
friend to so many.

Letter to the Editor:MLA
Charlie Wyse remembers Wilna

I was deeply saddened to hear of the recent death of Wilna Wellenbrink.
I knew Wilna for 25 years and worked with her when she was the Deputy
Clerk for the City of Williams Lake. I have always had the utmost
respect for Wilna and appreciated her professionalism and the support
she extended to me in my role as Councillor for the City of Williams
Lake. I extend my sincere condolences to Wilna's family and friends.

Wilna Wellenbrink died suddenly last week without medical intervention
and seemingly alone. However, she wasn’t friendless. She was a rabid
chatter on the Internet, having her own Inter Relay Chat (IRC) channel
and being a regular in several others. Wilna made this warm electronic
nest her home. She was a chat line operator who stopped any smutty or
bothersome crap from hitting the network.

Her very large community of Internet friends, some living halfway
around the world, are mourning the passing of a true buddy! This is not
to say they didn’t visit. Noel and Robin from Australia planned their
vacation so they could visit Wilna in the Cariboo! My wife Cheryl and I
were invited to the Laughing Loon to meet these world travellers and
on-line chatters.

Wilna also travelled to America to visit another chatter. One of her
buddies lives in Surrey and has been to Williams Lake to visit her and
visa-versa.

I first met Wilna because of my newspaper work covering the City Hall
beat. She was the Deputy Municipal Clerk. No matter what her title, it
was obvious Wilna was the one to go to for straight answers! All this
action around City Hall appeared very complicated and strange to me at
first, but Wilna would explain the process and answer my questions. I
also sat on the City’s Advisory Planning Committee and Wilna was the
recording secretary.

Between our group of local friends, I was one of the first to purchase
a computer and talked Wilna into doing the same. This was a long time
ago, and the first method of electronic communication I learned was
computer faxing. She soon learned about IRC lines and returned the
favour by loading my computer with the necessary software so I could
converse with her ever-expanding circle of friends.

It was these friends who became worried about her last week. She had
taken a nasty fall earlier. Nothing broken, but she was bruised and
sore. Her on-line chatting had diminished. She talked on the phone to
one buddy approximately 10:00 Wednesday, and send an email about 2:00
that afternoon. She said she was feeling poorly and didn’t come on line
that night.

This was very odd behaviour for Wilna and her friends became frantic,
including Lyn of Surrey, Shirlee in New Orleans, Rick a police chief in
Ohio, David from Virginia, and Chris in New Zealand. Her buddies knew I
lived nearby. These chatters are listed by nicknames. However, Lyn in
Surrey knew I was a writer and had sent articles to Andrew in San
Francisco. She phoned him and got my full name, looked me up and called.

My brave wife Cheryl went to Wilna’s house to see if her vehicle was
there ­ it was! She tried the door. The outer door was unlocked,
inner door standing open ­ but no answer! She phoned me and I told
her not to go inside. I knew this was not going to have a nice outcome
and called the police.

Wilna was discovered sitting upright in bed, peacefully dead. She
probably planned to read her book. Wilna was truly gone, but not as
alone as it would first appear. She had a very large family of Internet
chatters who loved her dearly and they’ve been expressing this grief in
emails and phone calls ­ even posting a memorial for her on line.

Text Version:
In Memoriam
IN Loving Memory OfWilna Wellenbrink (treecat)Who Passed Away On Sept.
14, 2005A light is from our network gone,A voice we loved is stilled,A
place is vacant in our homeWhich never can be filled,Some may think you
are forgottenThough on earth you are no more,But in memory you are with
usAs you always were before.Wilna is very dearly missed by her
StarLink-IRC Family Williams Lake Tribune